Move-in day happening in stages at SRU this year
Slippery Rock University's move-in Friday looked a little different than usual.
Around 265 students moved into SRU dorms while wearing masks and maintaining a distance from other families.
“Because of the pandemic, we were trying to spread people out on purpose,” said David Wilmes, chief student affairs officer. “We only had so many people arriving at each building at each time.”
Friday's group of students was the first group to arrive in a process that will extend through the weekend. When complete, about 800 students will be housed on campus.
Wilmes said the moment was bittersweet. He said a normal year would see around 2,800 students moving in, but 2020 is not a normal year.“It was nice to have some students back and starting the semester, but usually the full move-in is very exciting,” he said.Although the numbers weren't quite what they used to be, Wilmes said he was excited about the Week of Welcome scheduled activities that survived the COVID-19 changes.The Week of Welcome activities continue through the start of classes Monday with many of them taking place virtually. Some introduce students to the features of campus while others are more for entertainment and introducing classmates to one another.“I think we've prepared a pretty good Week of Welcome considering the circumstances. While all the events are virtual, they are bigger events. A hypnotist, a mentalist, a game show,” Wilmes said. “The difference is we're not doing them in crowds of 800 people; we're doing them online.”The programming for Week of Welcome is available on SRU's website.
